Thursday, December 14, 2006

Is it still considered rugelach if it's not rolled into the traditional horn or crescent shape? I was feeling lazy so I just rolled my cookies like a jelly roll and then sliced them. Maybe I should call them pinwheel cookies instead?

To make your pastry dough, beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and salt. Add the flour, and mix just until a dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and form the dough into 4 even pieces. Flatten each piece into a disk and wrap separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or as long as 2 days.

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Take the dough out of refrigerator and leave it on your counter for about 10 minutes to soften slightly.

To make your filling, mix granulated sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside sugar mixture. In another bowl, mix together walnuts and chocolate. Set aside.

To make your topping, mix granulated sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside topping.

Lightly flour 1 dough disk and place between 2 sheets of plastic wrap (or parchment paper). Roll out into a 12x8-inch rectangle and 1/8 inch thick. Remove the top sheet of plastic.

With the long side in facing you, brush the dough with 1 tablespoon of melted butter, and then sprinkle with 3 tablespoons of the sugar mixture. Then top with about 1/3 cup of the walnut-chocolate mixture. Using a rolling pin, gently roll over the filling to help it adhere to the dough. Tightly roll into a log, seam side down.

Brush the top of the log with the egg wash and sprinkle with the topping. Cut the log into 12 pieces. Transfer to your prepared baking sheet, cut side down and 1 inch apart.

Bake until golden brown, about 22-25 minutes. Allow cookies to cool in pan for 5-10 minutes, and then transfer to cooling racks.

i wanted to make something simple for the holidays in my cheap dorm kitchen. These were perfect. Sorta bs'd with wholewheat and probably a bit off... but they were delicious, just left the chocolate out! Fattening my flatmates on a delicious recipe. Thank you!

These make me think about my own cinnamon buns (Zeeuwse bolussen in Dutch). Long time since I made them. Next time I can try these because I have a feeling they will be at least as good. I just love warm, sweet smelling sugary bread like this.

A bakery in Pittsburgh, PA called Allegra Hearth makes rugelach like this, only about twice as thick. They're amazing and I think they actually keep all the tasty filling inside better than the traditional crescent shape.

The alpine strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is a cousin of the wild strawberry. It's sometimes simply referred to as alpineberry. I love to bake, cook and garden. My blog is a place to share my recipes and other tiny tidbits of my life.